Archbishop Timothy Michael
Cardinal Dolan is supporting Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) in a quest to
remove children’s access to pornographic materials in New York City Libraries.

Last month,
Assemblyman Hikind and a coalition of concerned parents expressed their shock
and indignation at learning that even the smallest children can easily obtain
inappropriate materials that no retailer would ever allow a child to hold. In a
press conference, Hikind noted that he was not asking for censorship of any
books for adults who wanted them. “The issue is removing these books from the
ready access of children,” he said.

Yesterday,
the Archbishop added his voice to the issue, calling the matter shocking and
regrettable “how easily children are able to attain such pornography.”

“I have
heard back from the various heads of the New York City Libraries,” said Hikind,
“and I am disappointed that they do not seem to see the problem. Rather than
take responsibility and address this, they cite the mission of statement of the
American Library Association which states, in part, ‘Libraries should not limit
the selection and development of library resources simply because minors will
have access to them.’ Again—we are not asking them to limit their collection or
censor their materials—just to remove it from the reach of children!”

Following
complaints by constituents, Assemblyman Hikind’s staff surveyed numerous
branches of the public library in Brooklyn where they found such inappropriate
titles as Best Gay Erotica, Lux’s Practical Erotica Adventure,
and Girls Who Score: Hot Lesbian Erotica, all clearly within reach of
small children.

Under the
library’s current system, children can check out any library book once they are
13 years of age—or even younger if parents did not realize such material was
available when library cards were created for their children. Books can also be
automatically checked out without the likelihood of any interaction with an
adult librarian.

“Because of
the way fiction books are placed on library shelves, inappropriate books often
end up on the very bottom shelves, clearly within reach of the smallest
children,” said Hikind. “This kind of content would never be allowed in schools
nor placed within a child’s reach by retailers. Certainly our public libraries
can do more to keep such books out of the reach of unsuspecting children.”

Assemblyman
Hikind has also called on Mayor Michael Bloomberg; Dr. Merryl Tisch, Chancellor
of the Board of Regents; and Dennis Walcott, Chancellor of the New York City
Department of Education, to address this issue.

Even small children have easy access to pornographic books at Brooklyn Public Library branches.